Euthanasia Activists Push Nation’s Capital to Legalize Assisted Suicide

State   |   Vanessa Daubman, R.N.   |   Jun 24, 2015   |   12:45PM   |   Washington, DC

The pro-euthanasia movement has set its sights on the District of Columbia. The so-called “Death with Dignity Act” before the D.C. Council poses a grave danger to the terminally ill, vulnerable elderly and those with disabilities.

We need YOUR voice! There will be a hearing before the Committee on Health and Human Services:

Friday, July 10th- 11:00 AM
Wilson Building, Rm. 500
1350 Pennsylvania Ave. NW

We need you and your friends to attend this hearing. Your presence will send a powerful message that the residents of the District are paying attention and we do not want this to become law in our nation’s capital. If you cannot attend because of work or another commitment, please contact us about submitting written testimony. We cannot sit on the sidelines on this issue. The lives of some of D.C.’s most vulnerable are at stake.

A wide variety of groups oppose this legislation including the medical community, the disability rights community and the pro-life community.

The bill before the D.C. Council is molded after Oregon’s doctor-prescribed suicide law. The Oregon experience should give pause to any other state or municipality seeking to follow suit. The “safeguards” in the law highly touted by assisted suicide lobbyists do not work. The Robert Powell Center for Medical Ethics explains why the so-called safeguards fail to protect the vulnerable.

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Everyone agrees that dying in pain is unacceptable. The government and insurance companies should do the right thing – provide treatment – instead of the cheapest thing – pay for lethal drugs. In Oregon, people are getting lethal drugs who long outlive the 6 month diagnosis, and many are getting lethal drugs for treatable conditions like hepatitis, HIV, and diabetes. Oregon is proof that general suicides rise dramatically once assisted suicide is promoted as a “good.

In their official policy position, the American Medical Association (AMA) notes, “Physician-assisted suicide is fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer, would be difficult or impossible to control, and would pose serious societal risks.”

Sanctioning doctor-prescribed suicide is not the route the D.C. Council should go if we truly want to honor the dignity of the vulnerable in our city.

LifeNews Note: Vanessa Daubman writes for Beltway Right to Life.

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